A View from M.L. Tyndall's Window!

It is with great pleasure that I share with you an interview that I completed with MaryLu Tyndall. This dear lady has such a sweet testimony, and her love for the Lord is evident in her writing and in the words she shares with her readers. Although MaryLu writes of pirates, it seems that only her heart has been pirated - by the Lord Himself! He has gifted this dear lady with terrific stories that shine His light in a very exciting way! Please, welcome MaryLu Tyndall to my Window!





Can you share with us where the idea of a female pirate originated and how you came to place her in a Southern town rife with pirate history? (I’ve actually taken the walking tour of Charleston, SC that features pirates! AMAZING stuff!!)


Yes, I’ve taken the same tour in Charleston! It was great. The idea of a female pirate came right out of history. Just google “Historical Female Pirates” and see what you come up with. In fact, I originally wanted to write the story of Anne Cormac who lived in Charles Towne in the early 1700s and who later became Anne Bonny, one of the most notorious pirates in the Caribbean, but she was a bit too ruthless for a Christian novel. LOL. But she does make a brief appearance in the story as a friend of one of Faith’s sisters. I chose Charles Towne precisely for its grand pirate history. What better town is there in which to place my lady pirate?


You delve pretty deeply into the concept of grace and forgiveness, especially as you near the end of the story. Can you share with your readers how this idea developed for the characters and how important/difficult it was to make their sacrifices believable? (I mean, that last chapter…I was totally there!!)


My original intent for the story was to portray the heroine, Faith, as one of the seeds in the parable of the sower—the seed that falls on the rocky soil and then falls away when troubles and tribulations come upon her, but as I progressed with the story and the characters, I realized I also had a great opportunity to show God’s love and forgiveness in both the main characters. The hero, Dajon, has been trying to earn God’s forgiveness by his good works, and Faith has made a mess of things by drifting away from God. While Faith desperately needs God’s forgiveness, Dajon needs to accept the fact that he already has it and he couldn’t earn it if he tried. How difficult was it to make their paths to God’s grace believable? Not hard at all, because I have been in both positions at different times in my life. (No, I wasn’t a lady pirate, but I came pretty close!)


Hope is a real difficult sister for Faith to deal with. As her history is revealed, the reader could be tempted to give up any chance of redemption for her. Will the Blue Enchantress be her story? (the ending indicates that possibility) How important is it for you to make others understand that NOTHING is beyond the scope of God’s forgiveness


Yes. The Blue Enchantress is Hope’s story. She’s the seed that falls on the thorny ground and is lured away from God by the pleasures and cares of this world. And I’m glad she seemed irredeemable. That’s what I was going for! I hope to reach all the women out there who have made similar mistakes as Hope, who feel dirty and unworthy and soiled and who think God wants nothing to do with them. I want to show that that there is no blemish, no stain, no well deep enough, no sludge too filthy, that God can’t find you, pick you up, clean you off and give you all His love.


As believers, there are many times we struggle to understand why certain trials seem to be heaped upon some while others’ faith seems almost effortless. How can you encourage your readers that God is sovereign even in our trials, and that His promise to bring good from the trials of His children is true?

Personally, I take it as a compliment if I going through trials and struggles. To me, that means, God sees something in me that He can use, and He’s training me, growing my faith, strengthening me through tribulation for His purposes. And what’s more important, more fulfilling in this life than to be used by Almighty God, to serve the King of Kings, to help usher in the Kingdom of God? Do we want to sit around living mediocre lives as we bow down to our own self-comfort? Or do we want to live life abundantly on the edge, to experience things we never would have experienced, to see things we never would have seen—to know God personally? So, I would say that God is the ultimate loving Daddy and like a good Father, He never sends anything into your life that isn’t for your good and His glory in the long run. You just have to believe, trust him, and stick it out. In other words, whatever you’re going through, don’t give up. You haven’t seen the end of the story yet!



Have you ever visited Charleston, SC? If so, what was your most memorable experience? If you’ve never been there, how did you so accurately capture the essence of that town?


Yes! I love Charleston! My daughter and I traveled there last year after The Red Siren was contracted. I wanted to get a feel for the city and do some research. We had a fabulous time and I fell more in love with the city than I thought I would. There were so many memorable experiences, but I would have to say that the historic walks through old Charleston were my favorite. We took the Charleston Walk and toured some of the historic homes, and of course, the Pirate tour, where we were taken into the old Exchange and down into the Provost Dungeon. In the Provost dungeon I got to see a section of the old wall which used to surround the city way back in 1718. Way cool. In fact, the jail scene in The Red Siren is taken from my tour of the Dungeon.

What exciting things is God doing in your life right now? Parting words of encouragement for your readers?

God is really taking me out into the deep water this year! He’s teaching me to trust Him in ways I never thought possible. Trusting Him with my time, my novels, finances, and my family. He’s challenging me to truly believe He is who He says He is and He will do what He says He will do. And you know what I’m finding so far? He’s exactly right! All the great men and women of the Bible were not perfect people or kind people or good people. But they had one thing in common. Each one sought God with all their heart and they believed what He told them. Take Him at His Word and see what wonderful things He will do!